


Lights In His Eyes

by JazzRaft



Series: The Pious and the Profane [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, M/M, Oracle!Noctis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-19
Updated: 2017-02-19
Packaged: 2018-09-25 11:27:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9818309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazzRaft/pseuds/JazzRaft
Summary: Nyx chuckled and assured him that he could not look more casual. In his hoodie and jeans, if anything the Oracle looked under-dressed for the carnival.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on [tumblr](http://jazzraft.tumblr.com/post/156430979587/how-about-some-more-oraclenoctisnyx-with-14) for #14 in [this prompt post.](http://jazzraft.tumblr.com/post/156180067603/send-me-two-characters-or-more-and-a-prompt-and)

“You’re supposed to talk me out of this.”

“Then I am in the wrong line of work.”

Noctis bit his lip to contain his excitement and pulled his hood up. Nyx scouted the street ahead of them while the Oracle organized his disguise. The city was so lively and distracting that Nyx doubted anyone would look twice at Noctis, even if he were walking around bare-faced. Nevertheless, the prince took every precaution.

“What do you think?” he asked Nyx, tugging his scarf over the bottom half of his face. “Incognito enough?”

“If you’re idea of incognito is the hobo assassin aesthetic, then sure. Totally.”

Noctis rolled his eyes, the only area of his face left visible. Nyx chuckled and assured him that he could not look more casual. In his hoodie and jeans, if anything the Oracle looked _under-_ dressed for the carnival.

“Does it look like I’m trying too hard to not be seen?” Noctis fretted.

“You’re good, come on,” Nyx said before he could talk himself out of this little venture. “Where to first?”

Noctis’s eyes sparkled and he hurried out into the brightly lit street. Despite the late hour, Altissia was alight with the twinkling of a thousand stars. It was as if the infinite tethers binding them to the night sky had all been cut, and they’d fallen into the cradle of the city. Music and laughter – from children and adults alike – flowed throughout Altissia in a glorious symphony. Moogles and chocobos waddled through the cobblestone lanes, dancing and jabbering and delighting all who passed them by.

As mystical as the creatures it was named for, the carnival appeared as if from a dream, enfolding the city in its soft yellow feathers and plush white arms out of nowhere. No one questioned it and no one complained. For days, the city had been celebrating the carnival’s wonders outside the gates of the Grand Palace, and for days, Nyx had watched Noctis smile wistfully from his window at the joyous undertaking.

It had taken quite a bit of reverse-psychology to plant the idea into the Oracle’s head that if he wanted to partake in the carnival while it was still in town, it wasn’t impossible to do so. A vague suggestion here, a deliberate objection there, and Nyx finally concocted the right response from his charge. He’d arrived to his room that night to find him climbed halfway over the balcony over-looking the city, freezing immediately – as if Nyx were a blind behemoth, and staying motionless meant he couldn’t detect him. But Nyx did see him, and shook his head in exasperation.

“What, you’re just going to leave me _here_?” he’d said and helped the prince flee his tower.

“I promise we won’t be out that long,” Noctis said presently – although Nyx wasn’t entirely sure who he was trying to convince with that statement. “Just a couple of sights, a view of the fireworks, and we’re back before anyone knows that we’re gone.”

“You do realize that the only person whose job it is to know that you’re gone is also gone with you, right?”

Noctis smiled back at him from beneath his scarf, taking Nyx by the hand and guiding him through the crowd. Oddly purposeful for a man who had absolutely no idea where he was going. Despite that, Nyx couldn’t help but smile himself, content to let his lord do the leading. He couldn’t recall a time where he’d seen the Oracle this excited. Far be it from Nyx to deny either of them the rare marvel that was Noctis’s smile.

Noctis was determined to see as much of the carnival as he could in the short time they had to spend before dawn and their inevitable return to the walls of the Grand Palace. And his determination was greatly rewarded. They managed to cover most of the events set-up across the city.

Nyx found the most fun from violently assaulting cactuars with a squeaky toy hammer in one of the arena games, with Noctis laughing along the sidelines as he watched the prickly green bastards elude the guard. Nyx was starstruck and terrified when Noctis completely obliterated the shooting gallery with deadly precision. The Oracle wasn’t quite as pacifistic as originally portended.

Less fun were the army of mascots that constantly absconded Nyx into mimicking ridiculous choreography. The juvenile steps and the furry-suited felons’ gibberish were almost worth the mortification when he heard Noctis laughing, arms wrapped around his waist and the corners of his eyes pearlescent in the night lights. Nyx could feel the edges of his lips turning up, and no over-exaggerated goading of the quirky chocobo next to him could seem to turn them back down again.

When the evening was finally dwindling down, Nyx found them a high, clear spot over-looking the waters to await the fireworks. Brightly lit gondolas crowded the waterways and tourists crowded along the edges of the boulevards to get a good view. During all of his reconnaissance outings, Nyx had discovered more than enough private corners of the city where he could escape the mob of Oracle followers to catch his breath. And those same spots were perfect viewing for the Oracle himself on his secret escape through the carnival.

“I’ve been catching glimpses of these fireworks every night,” Noctis said, pulling his scarf down and dropping his hood now that they were hidden from the public eye. “They sound like they’re going to be incredible!”

“Like nothin’ else out there, apparently.”

Noctis smiled at him, leaning his hands against the marble wall dividing their secret space from the rest of Altissia. The glow of the city turned his pale skin a soft gold, eyes a shimmering, ethereal blue. Lately, it wasn’t often that a day went by where Nyx didn’t find himself admiring just how striking he was. While his conscience told him that any attraction he might feel for Noctis was entirely inappropriate, it wasn’t a loud enough voice to prevent him from staring at the strands of soft raven hair that fell in his eyes. Eyes that – while willful and unyielding in their pursuit of his duties – could never seem to hold Nyx’s gaze. The gentle flutter of his lashes against the growing rouge across his cheeks as he glanced away never failed to enchant Nyx.

“Thank you,” Noctis was saying whilst he searched for anything else to look at but Nyx. “For coming out with me tonight. It was a lot more comfortable having somebody else around.”

“Really? Didn’t seem like you were eager for company when I caught you,” Nyx teased.

Noctis rubbed the back of his neck, laughing quietly. “My bravery only goes as far as the balcony, I guess.”

“I shudder to think of how you were planning on scaling down to the street on your own. Good thing I showed up when I did, or you might be a holy splat on the ground, huh?”

Noctis snorted, turning his face away so Nyx wouldn’t see him blush. There was little that he could hide from him though. Noctis leaned back against the ledge and breathed a deep sigh of the midnight air.

“I really just needed to get away. And I really wanted to get away… with you.”

Nyx stayed quiet, watching Noctis in the fairy light. He watched the tremulous reflections of the waters shiver through his eyes. Watched his fair skin bloom and his lip curl shyly beneath a light nip of his teeth.

“I knew you’d come,” he murmured. “You always do. And I just wanted to spend a little time with you. Away from everything. I, um… really like you. I know that we shouldn’t be ‘together,’ but…”

Noctis paused as Nyx pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, his skin flushed hot beneath the touch of his lips. He smirked, fond of the way the brief contact could force those beautiful blue eyes to steady and finally meet his.

“I didn’t talk you out of sneaking from the Palace,” Nyx said. “You really think I’m gonna let you talk your way out of this?”

Noctis blinked slowly. He considered Nyx for a moment, eyes as lucid as the golden waters below, before drawing a tentative step forward. His fingertips hovered hesitantly over Nyx’s chest before resting his palms against it, fingers curling delicately into the fabric of his shirt. His face pulled close, and Nyx was blind with the sight of his eyes so near to his own; wide as the sky and deep as the sea and as full of the freedom in both.

Nyx rested a hand over his hip, gently encouraging him to close even nearer. A small tremble rushed through Noctis just before he rose to lay his lips against Nyx’s. It was soft and it was sweet and more than Nyx would have ever let himself dare to hope for. Noctis curved into him, Nyx’s hand slipping into the small of his back as he did. Long, patient folds of the lips kept Noctis against him, nudging shy returns to each press of Nyx’s mouth upon his.

Nyx took a step and maneuvered Noctis against the ledge, curling him against it and pressing deeper. The smallest hum of gratification quivered from Noctis, and Nyx was enraptured by the feel of it against his lips. He found the soft fronds of his hair, weaving his fingers through it like silk, and Noctis’s arms slid up along his neck, folded behind his head, swathing him in affectionate touches.

Just as Nyx was losing himself in the intimacy of it all, the waters of Altissia suddenly burst with sparks of color. Noctis’s head turned to catch the beginning of the fireworks, breath coming in soft pants. He watched the explosion of lights in the sky for a moment, but he couldn’t make his eyes focus on them.

“Do you really think they’re as beautiful as they say?” he asked, trying and failing to reason with himself why he shouldn’t miss the spectacle.

“I dunno,” Nyx said, turning his face back to him. “It’s gonna be hard to beat what’s right in front of me.”

He kissed him again and Noctis’s eyes closed, the fireworks booming forgotten in the night sky.


End file.
